January 4, 2016
My mother called me today to let me know that a friend of ours had died last night from a heart attack. She was just a few months younger than me. We went to school together, were in the same 4-H group, and we would commiserate about being self-employed. Each Spring she would buy like 6 salad burnet plants. She loved them. Her death is bothering me. She was tough, strong and good hearted. This should not have happened to her. I guess it doesn’t matter how tough and strong and good hearted a person is, shit happens but it doesn’t make it right.

After learning about Angie’s death, I figured I better stop thinking about doing things and do them.

So, here it goes, my daily/weekly journal blog of what is happening here in the woods at Woodland Gardens from farm to greenhouse to home or one could say the good, the bad, and the ugly depending on the day.

We are coming off of an incredibly mild fall and first part of the winter but today bitter cold reality set in with frozen water buckets and a skin cracking north wind. Most of the ice is knocked out of the goats’ water buckets by smacking them (the buckets that is) against the tree by the side of the barn. I just have to aim right so any water in the middle doesn’t leave me in a coating of instant ice. But today is nothing compared to last winter when 15 degrees was the norm for weeks on end. The goats, fowl, horses, and cow can handle one night of bitter cold all snuggled in the barns with their friends. I’m just glad the extended forecast calls for milder temps.

So, aside from the frozen water buckets, my day consisted of making two loaves of sourdough bread, a batch of pizza dough, and cleaning. The bread is fun but the cleaning not so much but I have been in the right frame of mind for it, meaning I’m throwing stuff out. I cannot believe the number of catalogs that accumulate. Really, do we need to keep the Gempler catalog from 2014 and how many Johnny Seed catalogs do I need for one year?

As I have been wallowing through piles of catalogs, articles to read, and bills to pay, Raymond has been tearing the front end of the tractor apart. One leak on one side led to another leak on the other side which turned out to be a bigger problem than he thought. Bigger fixing and bigger money. I am so fortunate that he is capable of fixing it, at least I think he can and that it is January because he is using my greenhouse as a machinery shop. In another month we would be fighting over who gets to use the greenhouses. So he can use them now but by the end of the month….